How good are your foreign language skills.

[mjcoon]

But my / our French Teacher was every fourteen year old boys dream!!!

There's something about speaking French that requires a bit of pouting; is that why it is so sexy?

Mike.

 

[DanTribe]

I have two friends, she is Italian and he is Dutch, they got married and she announced "no way I am learning Dutch", so they spoke English between them.
However, when the first child arrived, the father began talking to the newborn in Dutch: she was so jealous she could not understand "what is he saying to my daughter" that she immediately learnt Dutch

We met a Belgian couple who conversed in English.
When we asked why we were told, he was Flemish and wouldn't speak French, she was Walloon and couldn't / wouldn't speak Flemish.
Probably exaggerated for our benefit.

 

[AntarcticPilot]

The only reasonably fluent language I have besides English is French; I can read it reasonably well, and could probably manage everyday things in it. However, I can manage pretty well anywhere in Europe, because I did classical Latin and Greek at school - and that gives me a key into the Mediterranean Languages. Oddly, modern Greek is probably the hardest for me - because the language I know is further away than the Anglo-Saxon of Beowulf! English with a smattering of German gives me a clue with Nordic languages, so between the two I can usually hazard a guess as to what notice-boards etc. say. The greek bits of Russian are OK, but the Slavic bits are opaque to me.

I should say that during a period when I was often working in Norway with Norwegians, I thought of learning Norwegian (which would allow me to communicate in any Scandinavian country). I gave up that idea when I realized that almost all Norwegians speak excellent English, and that they preferred to practise their English rather than letting me speak Norwegian!

My wife's mother tongue is Hakka, her primary Chinese language is Cantonese, and she also speaks some Mandarin (Chinese isn't a single language, and what are often called dialects are actually as different as Dutch and German). That all in addition with fluent English!

Many years ago, I was on a ship operating in Dutch waters. The local television (back before digital stations, so far fewer channels were available) mainly consisted of English language programs with Dutch sub-titles. I suspect that generations in the smaller European nations grew up learning English almost by osmosis, as a large proportion of their entertainment was in English!

 

[Zen Zero]

... English language programs with Dutch sub-titles. I suspect that generations in the smaller European nations grew up learning English almost by osmosis, as a large proportion of their entertainment was in English!

This is also the case in Portugal, traditionally too small and too poor for dubbing, they get all their films and imported TV in original language with subtitles. The result is that just about everyone who watched TV as a child speaks perfect English (and french and Spanish and Brazilian (see dialect)).

 

[Resolution]

In China for the last few years there has been a government push for people to learn English as a business language. Amazingly, there are loads of Disney schools using their cartoon characters to teach (brainwash?) young kids. About 50 schools at the beginning of this year, with a target of over 150 by the end of 2015.

 

[Sandy]

My wife speaks fluent French and German, gets by in Spanish, Latin and Italian.

I struggle with English.

 

[LadyInBed]

In France it's a panaché.

and in Spain I found that 'Clara du lemon' ( spelt phonetically ) got me what I wanted

 

[laika]

I suspect that generations in the smaller European nations grew up learning English almost by osmosis, as a large proportion of their entertainment was in English!

You'd have thought it would have worked the other way round, but although "tak" came in handy when I last sailed to Denmark, my other TV-acquired words such as "Statsminister", "Forbrydelsen" and "Broen" would have been less useful.

 

[Salty John]

I was very impressed with the language skills of the French when I visited their country - even little children of five or six years old can speak French much better than I can.

 

[Koeketiene]

You'd have thought it would have worked the other way round, but although "tak" came in handy when I last sailed to Denmark, my other TV-acquired words such as "Statsminister", "Forbrydelsen" and "Broen" would have been less useful.

In general, I have found that people living in an Anglo-Saxon country are rarely - if ever - exposed to foreign language media.
The odd series on BBC4 and that's about it.

Ages ago, I had an Irish girlfriend.
When driving along at one time she got quiet upset when I put a French or Spanish music cassette tape on (shows you how long ago that was).
Most insistent I put on something in English straight away.

She did not become the eventual other half.

 

[laika]

In general, I have found that people living in an Anglo-Saxon country are rarely - if ever - exposed to foreign language media.
The odd series on BBC4 and that's about it.

I rarely watch TV but when I do it's usually BBC4. Are you saying that all TV isn't 30% european cop dramas? I was trying to improve my french swearing by watching Spiral(/Engrenages) without subtitles but it's generally too fast and argot-y for me.

When driving along at one time she got quiet upset when I put a French or Spanish music cassette tape on (shows you how long ago that was).

Even the French seem to be largely doing music in English these days (well , the stuff which comes over here anyway). I've got a load of french music in my CD collection but with the exception of MC Solaar I have to go back Jacques Brel (yes, yes, Belgian...) for anything actually *in* french. Well there's always Trust on casette...oh wait that's actually Repression version Anglais.

 

[Roberto]

I was trying to improve my french swearing by watching Spiral(/Engrenages) without subtitles but it's generally too fast and argot-y for me.

Engrenages! I did not know they managed to sell it abroad; do you have "Braquo" too? I don't know the title translation, a bit like a French version of "The Shield" Now that's a tough one to understand.

 

[Sybarite]

oh thank you
Decent Spanish and Portuguese (esp Brazilian accent); for a few years I could even have a small conversation in kiSwahili, but then total lack of practice... lakini nimefahamu sasa

Habari?

 

[Sybarite]

I am totally lacking in confidence and therefore despite a similar education to prv cannot even attempt to try and speak in a foreign tongue. Having discussed this over the years confidence seems to be the key and cloggies are certainly confident

A beer is often found to aid fluency.

 

[NeilO]

We met a Belgian couple who conversed in English.
When we asked why we were told, he was Flemish and wouldn't speak French, she was Walloon and couldn't / wouldn't speak Flemish.
Probably exaggerated for our benefit.

I once polled up at Ostend Railway station to buy a train ticket to Bruges. Asked for the ticket in my best (and OK) French and was blanked by the guy selling the tickets. Happy to serve me when I asked again in English though.

 

[Sybarite]

and being forced to speak it

Imagine being forced to do all your schooling in a language other than your mother tongue. This was the case in the Eastern block countries where the schooling was obligatorily in Russian.

 

[Sybarite]

Rosetta Stone is pretty good for gaining a basic working knowledge of a language. As a very wise man once said, the best place to really learn a language in in bed. My wife is Spanish, so I rest my case.

Ref. The Sleeping Dictionary : Jessica Alba, Hugh Dancy.

 

[Sandy]

I was very impressed with the language skills of the French when I visited their country - even little children of five or six years old can speak French much better than I can.

It was the search dogs at the port of entry that impressed me.

Handler told the dog what to sniff and away it went and sniffed it!

 

[NeilO]

Engrenages! I did not know they managed to sell it abroad; do you have "Braquo" too? I don't know the title translation, a bit like a French version of "The Shield" Now that's a tough one to understand.

Hej

But "p*tain", "p*tain de m*rde" or "p*te" seem to be all you need to know from Braquo.

Didn't pick up much from "The Killing" though.

Tak

 

[peterb]

Britons always seem to think that they are the world's worst linguists. It isn't so. You just need a bit of lateral thinking.

The only purpose of language is communication. When I meet someone from a different country, then in order to communicate we need to have at least one language in common. There are three ways by which this can be achieved: I can learn his language, he can learn mine, or we can both learn a third language. And now comes the lateral thinking: instead of thinking about learning, think about teaching. The English-speakers have gone out not to learn hundreds of other languages, but to teach everyone else to speak English. Teach, not learn. And they've been very successful in doing it, which is why English is so widely used in international communication. And to me, that makes the English he world's best linguists, not the worst.

At least, that's my story, and I'm sticking to it.